Many of you have probably heard of the proposed reporting rule for Meaningful Use Stage 2. In this proposed rule, CMS announced their intent to align the remaining years of the Stage 2 with the proposed rule for Meaningful Use Stage 3 released in March. How will this affect those involved in care transitions?
More time to report
Last year, approximately 36 percent of eligible hospitals were able to attest to Stage 2 using some form of Stage 1 certified EHR technology (CEHRT). This year, Stage 2 meaningful use attestation is required for everyone. Fortunately, CMS recognizes the struggles hospitals are experiencing with Stage 2 attestation and have suggested a 90-day attestation period rather than a full year which is currently required. CMS has proposed shifting the attestation year to align with the year used for eligible providers, which allows eligible hospitals to attest for any 90-day period between October 1, 2014 and December 31, 2015. This should provide some relief to hospitals as it adds three months to the 2015 attestation year.
Streamlined measures
Since several measures are generally being met by hospitals, CMS has proposed eliminating the need for hospitals to report on them. One such eliminated measure is the Measure 1 of Core Measure 12 that requires hospitals to provide paper copies of their Summary of Care to patients for 50 percent of all transitions.
What to do next
- Move forward with your plan to attest until CMS has finalized the rule.
- Work on the transitions of care measure (Core Measure 12), specifically the requirement for electronic exchange of documents. This will only increase in intensity in Stage 3.
- Stays informed—keep an eye on CMS for the finalized rule.
A Deep-dive Into Specialty Pharma
A specialty drug is a class of prescription medications used to treat complex, chronic or rare medical conditions. Although this classification was originally intended to define the treatment of rare, also termed “orphan” diseases, affecting fewer than 200,000 people in the US, more recently, specialty drugs have emerged as the cornerstone of treatment for chronic and complex diseases such as cancer, autoimmune conditions, diabetes, hepatitis C, and HIV/AIDS.
Did you attest to Stage 2? Are you still struggling with care transitions? Let us know in the comments!
